Sentencing/Post Conviction

Held in Solitary Over 35 Years, Albert Woodfox Wins Habeas Petition

One of the nation’s longest-serving prisoners has just won another round in his ongoing appellate battle. Albert Woodfox, 61, who contends he was framed for the 1972 murder of a Louisiana prison guard, won a favorable final ruling yesterday on his habeas corpus petition from a federal district judge. He…

Sep 26, 2008 9:32 PM CDT

En Banc Appeals Court Homes in on Nacchio Witness Exclusion

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver assembled en banc Thursday to decide whether disgraced Qwest CEO Joseph P. Nacchio should get a new trial in the insider-trading case against him. Nacchio was convicted last year, but a three-panel appellate court ruled in March that he should get…

Sep 26, 2008 10:38 AM CDT

Fla. Teen Who Copied Movie Characters is Convicted of First-Degree Murder

Rejecting an insanity defense, a Florida jury last night convicted a teenager who was 14 at the time he admittedly stabbed a middle school classmate to death of first-degree murder. Assuming that the conviction stands, Michael Hernandez, who is now 18, is expected to spend the rest of his life…

Sep 25, 2008 10:13 PM CDT

Lawyer Accused of Living in Home of Dead Client Gets 15-Year Sentence

A disbarred Austin, Texas, lawyer who was accused of living in the home of a client who died and driving the car of another has been sentenced to 15 years in prison. Terry Erwin Stork, 70, could have been sentenced to life, the Austin American-Statesman reports. During the sentencing hearing,…

Sep 25, 2008 6:00 PM CDT

Mom Gets Probation for ‘76 Escape, Will Fight Prior Michigan Drug Conviction

Arrested earlier this year after more than 30 years on the lam, a California woman today was sentenced to probation for escaping a Michigan prison in 1976, a little over one year into a 10- to 20-year term for selling heroin. However, Susan LeFevre, 53, must still serve out the…

Sep 24, 2008 7:44 PM CDT

Poll Finds Support for Ending Some Mandatory Minimums

Fifty-nine percent of those polled by a sentencing group oppose mandatory minimum sentences for some nonviolent offenders. The poll (PDF) by Families Against Mandatory Minimums found a similar percentage—57 percent—would be likely to vote for a candidate for Congress who would eliminate mandatory minimums for nonviolent crimes, according to a…

Sep 24, 2008 5:43 PM CDT

Inmate, Slated to Remain in Solitary Until 2046, Describes Life of ‘Hell’

Willie Bosket has gone 14 years without a disciplinary violation, but he has been in solitary confinement in New York prisons for 20 years and is slated to remain there until 2046. Bosket’s rap sheet includes two subway murders committed as a juvenile, an assault on a 72-year-old man, and…

Sep 23, 2008 2:01 PM CDT

Ex-Lawyer Sentenced to 15 Years to Life in Dog Mauling

A former lawyer whose dogs mauled and killed a neighbor has received a higher sentence—15 years to life in prison—in her second sentencing in the case. Judge Charlotte Woolard of San Francisco Superior Court sentenced ex-lawyer Marjorie Knoller yesterday for the death of Diane Whipple, the New York Times and…

Sep 23, 2008 11:29 AM CDT

How a Bankruptcy Court Overrode Restitution in a Criminal Case

The plight of Mark Poveromo illustrates how bankruptcy law and criminal law can conflict, sometimes to the victim’s detriment. The Associated Press reports on Poveromo’s predicament and quotes experts who say the case highlights the need to revise bankruptcy laws to treat people better who are awarded restitution in a…

Sep 22, 2008 4:16 PM CDT

Ex-Prosecutor Sentenced for Stealing Crime Victim Money

A former Connecticut prosecutor has been sentenced to 22 months in prison for stealing nearly $85,000 intended for crime victims and charity. L. Mark Hurley had pleaded no contest to forgery and larceny charges and claimed the thefts were spurred by a gambling addiction, the Hartford Courant reports. He was…

Sep 19, 2008 4:07 PM CDT

Racketeering Convictions Reinstated for Accused NYPD ‘Mob Assassins’

Finding that a trial judge had mistakenly applied the statute of limitations, a federal appeals court has reinstated the racketeering convictions of two retired New York City police detectives who allegedly simultaneously worked as “mob assassins” while they were on the force. In that role, they allegedly participated in at…

Sep 18, 2008 11:06 PM CDT

Federal Judge Axes Ex-DA’s Libel Suit Over John Grisham’s ‘Innocent Man’

A libel suit filed over a true-crime book written by best-selling author and attorney John Grisham has been dismissed by a federal judge. Grisham’s book, The Innocent Man, focuses on the wrongful conviction of two men for the 1982 murder of an Oklahoma cocktail waitress, and U.S. District Judge Ronald…

Sep 18, 2008 10:27 PM CDT

Meet Detroit’s New Deputy Mayor, Ex-Prosecutor Saul Green

Still reeling from months of controversy over Detroit’s former mayor, Kwame Kilpatrick, who resigned earlier this month after agreeing to a plea deal in a perjury case, the city apparently can expect a focus on law and order under the city’s new chief operating officer. Incoming Detroit Mayor Ken Cockrel…

Sep 17, 2008 8:23 PM CDT

Actor Ryan O’Neal & Son Redmond Booked in Drug Possession Case

A probation search this morning of the Malibu, Calif., home of actor Ryan O’Neal, 67, resulted in his arrest, as well as the arrest of his son, Redmond, 24. Authorities allegedly found methamphetamine in the possession of the younger O’Neal and a vial of the illegal drug in the actor’s…

Sep 17, 2008 6:40 PM CDT

California Judge Reprimanded for Reckless Driving

A California judge who reportedly was driving south in a northbound lane of traffic when she caught the attention of police has been reprimanded for her reckless driving. Superior Judge Lisa Guy-Schall failed field sobriety tests when she was pulled over in September of last year by Escondido police, and…

Sep 17, 2008 6:20 PM CDT